An aerial view shows that roads and fields are flooded in Xingtai, Hebei Province, China, July 21, 2016.Reuters

Heavy rainfall in China has killed almost 87 people and thousands of people were forced to evacuate their houses, officials said on Saturday.

The Xinhua news agency reported that according to the civil affairs department, 72 people have been killed and 78 are still missing after the downpour triggered floods and landslides in the northern province of Hebei. It also said that nearly 50,000 homes have collapsed.

The central province of Henan was also highly affected by the rain. 15 people were killed and eight were missing from that province. The thunderstorms and strong winds forced at least 72,000 people to leave their houses. Nearly 18,000 houses have been damaged in that region.

The state media and local government said overall about 8.6 million people have been affected by the floods.

Moreover, in this summer, large parts of China have been inundated with rain, killing more than 200 people.

The government said there is a direct economic loss of more than 20 billion yuan ($3 billion) due to 1.5 million hectares of damaged crops.

The central bank of China issued a statement on Friday declaring that it would provide financial support for flooded areas.